From ice to dirt: Crews begin preparing PPG Paints Arena for a weekend of Monster Jam

CBS News

13-02-2025

Crews are putting the finishing touches at PPG Paints Arena for Monster Jam's stop in Pittsburgh.
That includes making the track that these behemoth trucks will drive on and it's quite the dirty process.
Forget ice, forget concert seating, and forget the hardwood, it was all about dirt on Thursday as those trucks got ready to take to the floor.
The banners above the floor might make you think about the Penguins' Stanley Cup championships since it is hockey season, but there is no longer a frozen surface - there are 80 truckloads of dirt and it doesn't get smoothed out quickly.
"Right now, we've got Pennsylvania dirt," said Juan Cruz, the Monster Jam tour manager. "They have about six hours of setting up all the dirt, putting it in position, molding it into place, and putting in the obstacles."
From the trucks to the loaders, there was a lot of staff at PPG Paints Arena and they liked the arena and the city.
"It's just so comfortable, it's such a large venue, it's got a large loading dock, it's got a large capacity, it just proves to be a great time for us this weekend," Cruz said.
That weekend starts on Friday night, there will be trucks rolling around the floor, and sometimes, the air.
"They're 1,200 horsepower engines, or 12,000 pounds, just the tire alone is 600 pounds," Cruz explained.
The trucks are large and so is what makes them run.
"It's totally different, it's not your everyday truck," explained Adma Niare, the crew chief of Thunder Roars. "You don't see it on the road every day, so all the parts are twice as big."
There's always maintenance being done to keep those massive wheels rolling.
"We're constantly working on these throughout the season, I mean, it's show after show after show," said Niare.
When it's all said and done when it's time to return to the ice and the stage, that's when even more work begins.
"We like the leave venues as beautiful as when we arrive," said Cruz.